Road trip around Europe 2019 - Germany (3/5)

After Amsterdam we change tack and head South towards Germany. A quick blast on the Autobahn and we are in Cologne or Köln.

* Don't forget to watch the videos at the bottom of this page *

Cologne Cathedral or Hohe Domkirche is apparently Germany's most visited tourist attraction.

Next to the cathedral is Heinzelmannchenbrunnen - did you twist your tongue yet?

A statue depicting some kind of folk tale about hard work and laziness.

It's difficult to get a shot without any scaffolding in it

Very ornate main entrance.

Agilolphusaltar - the hand carved altar piece with hundreds of small figures depicting biblical scenes.

As far as churches go the Cologne Cathedral is truly breathtaking.

 

The rather impressive train station.

Some Hohenzollern king or another.

The Hohenzollern Bridge over the Rhine - an impressive landmark of Cologne.

Looking back towards the Cathedral from the bridge.

Millions of padlocks on the railing.

Hoards of tourists even in March.

The Rhine Valley

The section of the valley between the towns of Koblenz and Bingen known as the Rhine Gorge is a World Heritage Site.

Koblenz sits at the confluence of two massive rivers the Rhine and the Moselle or Mosel if you're protestant.

River cruise ships moored, some had French and Swiss flags.

Deutches Eck

The Moselle river with Koblenz in the background.

The Moselle flooding its banks.

Massive statue of Kaiser Wilhelm The Great who unified Germany.

Ehrenbreitstein fortress on the eastern bank of the Rhine.

The statue surrounded by the flags of all German Lands.

There is a cable car that will take you to the fortress on the other side.

The great junction of rivers.

Not sure how this American flag fits in, maybe they're grateful for not having to learn Russian. 

Free street parking today, it's Sunday.

And a few shots from the Rhine Valley... driving towards Bingen.

Beautiful scenery, shame about the weather.

Loreley rock, a natural high point of the Rhine Gorge

Lots of traffic on the river, cargo boats transporting everything from shipping containers to cars and even natural gas.

Over the hill and into another valley... Moselle (Mosel) Valley

Picturesque German villages along the way.

In the heart of the Mosel wine region.

The Moselle, like the Rhine, is also flooding its banks.

The village of Piesport, home of the Piesporter Goldtröpfchen wine.

Leaving the Moselle Valley and crossing into the Eifel mountain range.

And that's it for Germany. Tomorrow we are in Luxembourg.